Girl at the Rock Show
by AlexisJones
Summary: AU. Cosima meets an enchanting blonde at a concert.
1. Chapter 1

'Oiu. I'm fine. It's so cold though!'

Cosima's ears perked up at the sound of a French accent and she tuned into the conversation going on behind her, anything was more interesting than listening to Scott talk about the new Star Wars trailer again anyway. They were standing in the queue for a Two Fingers gig; Scott looking incredibly out of place in his button up shirt and chino's.

'Canada is cold,' agreed a second voice 'I told you to bring a jacket.'

Cosima held her hand up to Scott to signify that she was no longer interested, and opened up the shoulder bag she was carrying, turning to the two women behind her as she pulled out a long cardigan 'Hey, did err, one of you say you were cold?' She got her first look at the women as she finally managed to wrestle the cardigan out of her bag. ' _Woah'_ she thought as she looked up at the two women, her eyes automatically pulled to the strikingly beautiful blonde with the long legs. The blonde gave a bemused look and a small smile 'Oui, that was me.'

'Ah awesome, you can err, like totally borrow this, if you want?' Cosima tried to play it cool but was mentally thanking a god she didn't believe in for bringing this woman into her life. She held out the cardigan and the blonde smiled again, slightly bigger this time 'you would give your clothes to a complete stranger?' she asked, wiggling her eyebrows,

'to a stranger as good looking as you I would' retorted Cosima, cheekily.

'Ah, but you had not even seen me when you started opening your bag.'

'Alright, you got me.' Cosima held her hands up in mock surrender, 'I'm actually just a really nice person. So, d'ya want it?'

'Oui, merci.' The woman pulled the cardigan on and wrapped it around herself, Cosima taking in her curves as she did so. 'But wont you be cold yourself now?'

'What?' Cosima wasn't paying attention to her words, too caught up in her body 'Erm, no. Nah, I've been here quite a while so I'm mostly immune to the cold. You're from France, I guess?'

'Oui' The woman seemed amused by the short American but wasn't forthcoming in her answers

'Okay well, enjoy,' Cosima turned back to Scott, who was now engrossed in some game on his phone and paying no attention. He was used to Cosima making new friends everywhere she went. 'Hey' she felt a soft hand on her shoulder and let herself be spun back around 'I'm Delphine' Delphine said and nodded to her friend 'This is Krystal.'

'Oh right, uh yeah, Cosima'

'Enchantee, Cosima.'

'Enchantee' replied Cosima and Delphine laughed 'Your accent is awful.' Shrugging, Cosima replied 'well, I took German in school.'

'German?' Delphine recoiled in fake horror 'Why would you take German?'

'I don't know!' She laughed, 'Cos I'm an idiot, apparently.'

'Mmh yes. That is very…' she searched for the correct word 'idiotic. I think.' She leant in as she spoke and bumped the smaller girl's shoulder. Cosima hid her smile at the small amount of contact and looked up, into Delphine's eyes 'Well maybe you'll have to teach me how to French.' Delphine rose her eyebrows incredulously and Cosima winked 'how to talk French, obviously. Jeez Delphine, get your mind out of the gutter.' Delphine opened her mouth to reply but at that moment the line suddenly shuffled forward and Cosima checked her watch, 'Oh cool, the doors are opening.' She reached into her bag and bought out a brown paper bag 'Yo Scotty! Want a brownie?'

'Uh, thanks.' Scott took the offered brownie and gave a small, awkward wave to Cosima's new friends he took a huge bit of the brownie and spluttered 'Cosima, do these have… are these, _special_ brownies?' Cosima just laughed and wove her hands around in the air 'All the brownies I make are special, Scotty, cos they're made with love.' She fluttered her eyelashes at the nerdy boy and his uncertainty melted away 'Fine' he said, taking another bite, 'but if I start freaking out or seeing things or-'

'It's pot, dude. It's not acid. Chill.' She wove the bag at Delphine and Krystal, who had been constantly texting the whole time, 'You guys want a brownie?' She asked, almost daringly. Krystal waved her off with a 'I can't, I'm on a diet.' And Cosima turned her attention back to Delphine. She dipped one, perfectly manicured hand into the bag and bought out a brownie 'merci, Cosima.' She took a dainty bite and swallowed, all the time keeping eye contact with Cosima. Cosima gulped, 'how the hell does she make eating a brownie so damn _sexy_?' she thought as she grabbed her own brownie and put the others back in her bag. 'Ceux-ci sont bien, vous êtes un bon cuisinier' Delphine spoke and it was as if she was pouring melted honey into Cosima's ears 'Yeah, uh. Totally didn't get any of that.' Cosima laughed,

'I said they taste nice, you're a good cook.' Delphine explained 'Consider it your first lesson in how to "French"'

'Mmh,' Cosima attempted to repeat the words 'ceux-si-on.. er…Nope, I lost it.'

'You are a bad student.'

'Nuh huh-I think you're a bad teacher.'

'Hmm, I have never had any complaints before.'

'Oh really?' Asked Cosima suggestively 'Just how many people are you teaching French to?'

'vous seul , mon seul et unique.'

'Uh, I have no idea what that means either, but I'm gonna pretend it's a compliment.'

'It is.' Delphine said simply, with an elegant raise of her shoulders

'Oh, ah, rad.' Cosima stumbled underneath the weight of Delphine's eyes.

'Totally, rad.' Delphine mocked in her best American accent, smiling when received a laugh from the deadlocked girl 'non?' she asked 'Perhaps you will have to teach me how to speak American?'

'Alright, it's a deal' The two girls shook hands and Cosima swore that they kept their hands together for far longer than was necessary.


	2. Chapter 2

The brownie was just starting to kick in as Cosima reached the end of the queue; she handed her ticket over to the inspector and got into the venue. She was hit by the smell of spilled beer and mingled bodies and she sighed in happiness. This is where she felt most at home. Surrounded by like-minded people, feeling the music pumping through her veins. There was no band on yet so the music was coming from some pretty shitty speakers by the stage but Cosima felt her body start to move to the beat anyway. 'Cosima, wait!' The blonde was a minute behind her, having had to wait at the ticket inspection. Cosima turned and saw the gangly woman trying to shrug her way out of the cardigan. It made Cosima happy to see that maybe Delphine wasn't as elegant as she had first thought, although even as she struggled she looked more beautiful than any woman Cosima had ever seen before. 'Woah, woah. Keep it. It'll give you a reason to come find me after the show.' Cosima winked, grabbed Scott's hand and pulled him into the crowd before Delphine could argue. 'Eh, are you really gonna give that girl your cardigan?' He asked 'You really like that cardigan'

'Yeah, but I also really like that girl.'

Scott stared at her

'What?'

'That was so cheesy Cosima.'

She laughed and nudged the boy with her hip 'Come on Scotty, lets go dance!'

Delphine watched the small girl bounce away, dragging the quiet boy with her, and found herself jealous of the ease in which he held her hand. She had thought that Cosima had been flirting with her, but maybe she really was just being friendly. Maybe the quiet boy was her boyfriend. Maybe she-. Delphine shook her head and forced herself to stop thinking about Cosima. Why did she even care? She looked out at the crowd again but couldn't spot Cosima, probably because she was so damn short. She caught herself smiling at the thought and then shook her head again, how had this girl got so inside her brain? She felt a hand at the small of her back and turned to face Krystal, who had finally put her phone away. 'Okay girl! You ready to daaance?' Delphine loved Krystal's infectious energy and followed her into the crowd, although she never quite managed to stop looking for the brunette with the bright eyes and sexy smile.

Delphine's eyes were lightly closed as she rolled her hips with the rhythm of the music. Her hands were moving slowly through the air and she felt as though she was swimming rather than dancing. The air was thick with body heat and heavy breathing. The concert hall was technically a no smoking zone but there was the distinctive smell of cigarette's lingering and it made Delphine's hands itch for a smoke. But no, she was trying to quit. So instead she danced her cravings away, not even really hearing the music. Instead she felt it, she felt it in her hips, in her fingers, in her shoulders. She opened her eyes when she heard giggling and looked at her friend with suspicious eyes. Krystal was not evening trying to be sneaky as she blatantly used her iPhone to film Delphine dancing. 'What?' She laughed at Delphine's child-like pout, 'You've never danced like this before, you're all… bohemian.'

'I don't know' Said Delphine, too happy to even care 'maybe it is this cardigan, making me… bohemian.' She tested out the word and decided she liked the taste of it on her tongue. She'd never been called bohemian before. Uptight, ambitious, even cold, but never once bohemian.

'Hmm maybe,' Krystal didn't seem convinced 'Or maybe it was that brownie, eh?'

'Does it matter?' Delphine held both of Krystal's hands in her own and forced her to dance 'I feel great.'

* * *

'I feel hungry.' Cosima complained when the concert was over

'Me too.' Scott agreed and Cosima laughed. She knew that Scott had only even tried weed once in college and not really liked it, but she had to admit she liked stoned Scotty. He was laidback and less nervous, he'd undone the first few top buttons on his shirt and even danced with a girl. Cosima resolved to get Scott stoned more often, then he might even get laid.

'Cosimaa' Scott whined, 'Can we please stop waiting around for your girl crush. I need a burger. Oh, or fried chicken. Or maybe a sandwich. A giant sandwich with three different layers.'

Cosima laughed again, excited to see Scott with his first case of the munchies. 'Dude, just one more minute'

'That's what you said a minute ago.'

'Patience, grasshopper.' Cosima looked around at the rapidly emptying concert hall, trying to spot the tall blonde with the amazing hair. For the first time she was worried that she hadn't waited. She strained her bloodshot eyes but the room was almost empty now and muttered to herself 'Come on, come on.' She was just ready to call it a day and admit she'd just lost her favourite cardigan when she spotted a bouncing blonde head, walking in the opposite as everyone else, walking toward Cosima. She let a slow smile spread against her face, hoping for a sexy smoulder but suspecting she was grinning like an idiot.

'You're grinning like an idiot.' Scott whispered 'Be cool dude.' But Cosima couldn't be cool. Cosima didn't even care, she was just happy Delphine was coming back. 'Cosima! Je suis désolé! I'm sorry!' She managed to untangle herself from Cosima's cardigan and she handed it over, 'I'm sorry, Krystal is not feeling well, I need to go. Je suis vraiment désolé.' She leant down and kissed Cosima quickly on both cheeks, before running off and leaving Cosima staring into thin air and clutching at her cardigan in despair.

'I'm sorry Cosima.' Scott was sad for his friend but Cosima shrugged him off,

'Its cool dude, lets go get some food yeah!?' She tried to hide her disappointment as she pulled the cardigan on and her throat caught at the smell of expensive French perfume. 'So where d'ya wanna go?' Cosima hardened her exterior and plunged her hands deep into her pockets. Why did Delphine's friend have to get sick? Why didn't she stick around for a bit? She thought they had hit it off. Cosima's face scrunched up as she felt something in her pocket, she bought out her hand and peered through her glasses at the receipt. She flipped it over and smiled at the incredibly neat handwriting

 _Delphine Cormier_

 _-French tutor_

 _Call me_

Smooth Miss Cormier. Smooth.


	3. Chapter 3

Cosima inputted Delphine's number into her phone and continued to stare at it for half a minute until Scott's hungry whine snapped her out of her daze. 'Are you gonna text her?' he smiled his wide, dopey, smile and Cosima was filled with affection for the geeky boy. 'Not yet,' she smiled, putting the phone back in her pocket 'I've been neglecting you all evening, lets go eat.'

Cosima and Scott spent the next hour or so hanging out in cheap fast food joint, eating junk food and people watching. But by 12 O'clock Scott, who was used to being in bed before half ten, had slipped into a sleepy, half stoned stupor. Cosima put him in a taxi and sent him home, paying the driver before Scott had a chance to. She jumped into her own taxi and held her phone in her hands the whole way home, writing and deleting about ten different messages to Delphine, searching for the perfect words.

On getting back to her student house Cosima sneaked inside, breathing a sigh of relief when she realised her housemates were still out. Usually she was such a sociable person but tonight she really felt like she needed to be alone. She hurdled upstairs and straight into the shower. As she washed the night off her she thought only about Delphine. About Delphine's laugh, her raised eyebrows, her lips as she'd kissed Cosima's cheeks. But mostly she thought about what she should text her. When she finally got out of the shower she pulled on a robe and hoped into bed, sending off the text message she'd been rehearsing in her head.

 **I heard this was the best French tutor in town?**

She thought it worked; it was playful but not too forward. But as the minutes ticked on and she heard nothing back she started second guessing herself. Her doubts proved to be for nothing when her phone buzzed and the screen lit up with a reply,

 **I guess it depends on who you ask. Some very cheeky girl told me I was not such a good teacher today.**

Cosima grinned, happy that Delphine was playing along, her reply was sent quickly

 **Good teachers don't run away from students because someone is 'not feeling well'**

 **Hmm, and what exactly is that suppose to mean?**

 **Are you sure you weren't just making an excuse to get away from me ;) ?**

Cosima was shocked when her phone lit up again, not with a text message, instead Delphine seemed to be… _facetiming_ her? She hoped she looked halfway decent after her shower and accepted the call, excited to see the curly blonde's pretty face again. But instead she was met by the sight of Krystal's head half way down the toilet, and the sound of her furiously vomiting. 'Ew gross! Dude!' She heard Delphine chuckle as the camera was reversed and she was finally greeted by the face she wanted to see. 'You believe me now that Krystal really was sick?'

'Yeah dude, although I totally could have been spared that image.'

'You should have seen her in the taxi home.' Delphine was deadpan.

Cosima shivered at the thought, blood she could deal with, training to be a scientist had made her pretty indifferent to bodily fluid, but there was something about sick that just made her skin crawl.

'Don't even go there.' Cosima found it difficult to keep her hands still when talking, and Delphine was allowed a peak at her bedroom as the camera was waved about in Cosima's enthusiastic hands

'Oh!' She said, making sense of Cosima's surroundings, 'You are in bed? Did I disturb you? I can go…'

'Nah, don't be daft, I texted you, remember. I'm only in bed cos it's the warmest place in this house'

Delphine furrowed her brows, 'why don't you just put the heating on?' she asked,

'I'm a student, Delphine, I can't afford that kind of luxury!'

Delphine realised that she knew very little about the strange American girl, in fact they were practically strangers. And yet, she didn't feel like a stranger, she felt like a friend. She stared at the smiling girl on the small phone screen and realised she hadn't been paying attention to anything she'd been saying.

'Sorry, what was that?'

Cosima chuckled, 'I was just saying, heating, good food, nice wine, its all luxuries I've learnt to live without.'

'Non! Non, Cosima!' Delphine was fake angry 'you cannot say this to a French person! It makes me very sad. You really don't drink cheap wine do you?'

'I don't know… Is two bottles for a fiver cheap?'

'Oh non! Non, this is an outrage! You will have to come round to mine and experience real wine one day!'

Cosima smiled at the casual invitation and nodded 'yeah, okay. Sounds good.'

'So, Friday?'

'Uh, what?' Cosima hadn't expected the invitation to come with a specific date; she thought Delphine was saying it more hypothetically.

'Friday? You will come and drink some real French wine with me? Maybe I'll even cook…'

'Yeah, totes. Friday is cool. Uh thanks.' Cosima was very rarely at a loss for words but this woman seemed to have some sort of power over her, it annoyed her, she wanted to be smooth and charming, not this bumbling, jittery fool. Not that Delphine seemed to find her foolish, in fact quite the opposite, the corners of her mouth lifted up as Cosima accepted her invitation

'Parfait! Do you drive?'

Cosima smiled sheepishly, 'I have a skateboard?'

Delphine didn't even seem surprised, 'Of course you do. Of course the hippy-chic girl with the pot brownies skateboards.' She sighed, 'Then I will pick you up at hmm, shall we say eight?'

'Eight is great' Cosima winced internally at the stupid rhyme and hoped Delphine didn't think she was a total doofus.

'Eight it is then.' Just then Cosima heard a small whine off camera, it seemed Krystal had stopped throwing up long enough to call for Delphine.

'Sound like you're needed in the bathroom, huh?'

'Oui. Unfortunately. I'm sorry, I should probably go look after her.'

'Hey, no worries dude. Try not to have too much fun.'

'I promise nothing. Goodbye Cosima, I'll see you Friday.'

Cosima loved the deadpan humour and her cheeks were starting to hurt from smiling too much, 'Later, Delphine.' She played it cool and terminated the video call. Once she was sure they had been disconnected she let out a small squeak of excitement and threw her hands over her face, unable and unwilling to control the smile still spread across her cheeks.


	4. Chapter 4

'Oh. Now I get it.'

The door opened and Delphine was greeted by a tall, slim boy with sleek black hair.

'Uh, hello.' She stammered awkwardly, not sure how to respond to that, 'I am here for Cosima?'

'That's a shame.' A second boy pushed past the first and leant suggestively against the door frame 'You sure you don't wanna pick me up instead?'

'Tony! Felix! Stop it!' A high pitched voice trilled and the boy she assumed was Tony moved to let Delphine inside, giving her a cheeky wink as he did so, she stepped over the threshold gingerly. The source of the voice came from a smartly dressed woman sat surrounded by textbooks, she stood as Delphine came into view and offered her hand to shake 'Hello, I'm Alison Hendrix, you must be Delphine?'

'Oui, eh, yes.'

The woman lowered her voice and shot an exasperated look at the two boys who were now play fighting on the other side of the room 'Don't worry about those two. They're just socially inept.' She raised her voice to normal level again 'Anyway, Delphine. It was lovely to meet you but I really must be getting back to studying. Cosima is still in her room, it's right at the top in the attic. Just go all the way up the stairs and you can't miss it.' Delphine nodded and walked toward the stairs, followed by a loud catcall from Tony 'My room is second on the right, second floor. If you fancy something a bit more-' Delphine never got to hear what Tony was because he was cut off by a very sharp scolding from Alison. Delphine was baffled by the oddness of Cosima's housemates, but she expected nothing less, and she thought she would get along with them even, given time. She couldn't help but peer at the other doors when she reached the second floor, all the bedrooms had colourful welcome signs blu-tacked up. Alison's simply stated 'Alison's room' in very neat script, the door opposite read 'Closets are for clothes, (fabulous, fabulous, clothes!)' She assumed that was Felix's room, and the last made her laugh out loud, 'MAN CAVE.' The sign proudly exclaimed 'NO ENTRY' and then in smaller writing underneath 'Unless you're hot, or have food'

She went back up the stairs quickly, excited to read Cosima's welcome sign, she reached the top floor and smiled. The sign read.

'Welcome to the trip, man.'

She knocked once but there was no reply, judging by the music spilling out from underneath the door she guessed Cosima couldn't hear her, she pushed the door open and entered. Cosima's room was just so… right. Delphine barely knew the girl but she could immediately tell that the room suited her. It had the same off- white coloured walls of the rest of the student house, but hers were mostly covered with large science posters and Indian style tapestries. The smell of incense lingered in the air, although there was none burning now, and Delphine admired the insane amount of books, both fact and fiction, that were strewn over the floor. But what really caught her attention was Cosima herself, back turned to Delphine, oblivious of her entrance, she was swinging her hips to the beat of the music as she finished tying her dreads up and checking herself out in the full length mirror. She let out a small shout of surprise when she turned and found Delphine admiring her from her doorway

'Oh shit, dude sorry. I didn't hear you come in' She seemed unfazed by the blondes presence as she checked the clock on the wall, 'Wow, I'm only like five minutes late. That's a record.' She turned the music off and faced Delphine again 'Okay, I'm ready to have my mind blown by' she put on a horribly over the top French accent 'some truly exquisite French wine.' She sashayed over to the door but Delphine wasn't quite done being nosey. She stepped further into the room, brushing past Cosima and checked out more of her stuff, 'Your room it…'

'Messy yeah I know. You think this is bad, you should see it during finals week.'

'Non, I wasn't going to say messy.' She shot Cosima a sideways glance, 'although it is. I was going to say, it suits you.'

'What? I'm messy?' Cosima pouted and threw her hands in the air 'and to think. I put all this effort in, for nothing.'

Delphine took the chance to really admire Cosima's outfit, a maroon dress that hugged her curves, black heels and of course, the millions of bracelets that adorned her wrists. It was a simple look, but she pulled it off magnificently.

'No, I would not say it was for nothing.' She was finally finished looking around Cosima's room and she brushed past her once more on exiting 'I only hope my cooking is as good as you look.'

Cosima's eyebrows rose at the compliment and she gave a cocky smile as she followed the blonde down the stairs, making sure to lock her room behind her.

Delphine was unsure of herself. ' _I only hope my cooking is as good as you look.'_ Where on earth did that come from? She thought as she walked back down the stairs.

Cosima hurried her out of the house quickly, before Tony and Felix had a chance to make any more inappropriate comments and the two women walked to Delphine's car in companionable silence. This in itself was strange, Delphine was used to feeling uneasy around new people, but Cosima had a way of making her feel calm. Except when her hand would accidently brush against hers like it was doing now. Then she felt the complete opposite of calm. She didn't exactly know why the light skin contact made her heart race, but it was a strangely nice feeling.

As soon as they buckled up Cosima reached for the AUX cord, asking Delphine 'do you mind?' as she plugged her phone in. Delphine was beginning to realise that music played a big part in Cosima's life. 'Is there ever a time when you're not listening to music?' She asked over the loud electro blasting through her barely used speakers. 'No way dude! Music makes everything better you know, studying, cleaning, sex.' Here she paused to wink 'It just, elevates the mood.' Delphine hummed in response, and settled back to enjoy the music as she drove.


	5. Chapter 5

Cosima lay flung out dramatically over her bed, she hadn't even bothered to take off her shoes. One arm fell over her eyes, effectively blocking out the outside world as she remembered the events of only a few hours before. Her hands itched for a joint but she couldn't find the energy to even roll one. She just kept thinking, how had it all gone so wrong?  
The evening had started off pleasantly enough, if not a bit awkwardly. But as the two girls got to know each other better they had easily fallen back into light banter, with an edge of flirtatious teasing.

'So it's Doctor Cormier then?' Cosima had crooned after spotting the framed doctorate hanging on the wall above Delphine's desk. 'That's pretty impressive.'  
'Oui, I guess it is.' Delphine half-heartedly stirred the sauce she was making for her guest, her eyes followed Cosima as she continued her inspection of the apartment. Cosima's fingers lightly traced over the books on the bookcase, running her fingertips down the spines as she read the titles. Delphine had never once been jealous of a book before, but she found herself jealous now. 'You guess so?' Cosima seemed confused at the hesitation in Delphine's voice 'You've got a doctorate! You must have worked like, so hard, for that? You should totes boast about it.'  
Delphine chuckled dryly, still watching from the kitchen 'It's not such a big deal. Are you ready for wine?' Her hand hovered over two wine glasses, ready to pour, 'Sure!' Cosima bounded across the room like a puppy and seized the wine glass in one hand, swinging it to her lips. The red liquid swirled in the glass, getting seriously close to spilling, but somehow it made it to Cosima's lips without overflowing. Delphine rose her eyes at Cosima's casual nature, and waited for a response, Cosima swirled the wine around in her mouth before swallowing 'Hmm, I'm detecting hints of raspberry, maybe, strawberry too? With definite hazelnut undertones.'  
Delphine was slack jawed 'How did you know that?' A cocky smile formed on Cosima's lips 'Don't let the pretty face fool you, I'm actually an expert in many, many, things.'  
'Modesty apparently not one of them.' Delphine scolded,  
'I don't hear you disagreeing though!' Cosima was fluttering her eyelashes at the taller girl and Delphine found herself at a loss of things to say, luckily Cosima didn't seem fussed and her confession came with a wave of her hands, 'I'm kidding. I read the back of the bottle whilst you were cooking.' She poked her tongue out through her teeth and swayed her way into the small kitchen until she was standing straight behind Delphine, 'are you sure there's nothing I can do to help?'  
Delphine sensed how close Cosima was standing to her and it made her muscles tense as she methodically continued stirring 'Non, non. It's fine. I actually like my food to taste good and I have a feeling you're not such a great cook?'  
'Hey! I'm awesome at cooking!' Cosima edged her way out of the kitchen, allowing the chef more space as she worked. Delphine released a breath she didn't know she was holding and tried to focus on the food.  
'You are?'  
'Well… I guess it depends what you mean by cooking. My instant noodle skills are down. My beans on toast cannot be beaten. And I can even boil an egg. My talents are endless really.'  
'I'm sure they are' Delphine almost blushed at her own thought. Almost. She couldn't quite fully commit herself to the notion that she wasn't enjoying Cosima's attention. It's natural she convinced herself, to like receiving attention, be it from men or from women. But really she knew she was enjoying it a lot more from Cosima than from any man previously. She picked up her glass of wine and drank quickly.

Back on the bed, Cosima groaned, squeezing her eyes even tighter shut. But no matter how hard she tried she couldn't stop her mind from replaying the evening. How she wished it had played out differently, that the two women could have had a nice meal, maybe a few more drinks, perhaps even a kiss on the cheek before she went home. Cosima cursed her own damn stubbornness and let the evening replay for what seemed like the twentieth time.

Cosima had insisted on doing the washing up and the slightly drunk Delphine was happy leaning with her back against the wall, watching the smaller girl over the edge of her nearly empty wine glass. With her hands still in the sink Cosima craned her neck to make eye contact with the other woman, 'so err, what is it that you do, exactly?' There was a pause as Delphine examined that question, the two had talked nonstop throughout the meal but it was only now that she realised they still knew very little about her. They had managed to cover religion, childhood memories, places they'd like to see, but they seemed to have neglected the very basics in their conversations. 'I work at the DYAD institute,' Delphine said tentatively, as soon as the words were out of her mouth she noted the way Cosima stiffened, 'Ahh, you know it then?' Cosima chose her next words very carefully, not wanting to insult her new friend. 'Yeah, I mean, I know of it. I've never like, looked into it or anything.'  
'You know, it is not as bad as it's reputation makes out. We are not all "freaky leekies" and we've been making some pretty incredible advances.'  
'No, yeah, of course.' The soapy water was being splattered everywhere as Cosima waved her hands about, 'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to like, insult you.'  
'Non, non. I'm sorry. I am just so used to peoples responses when I tell them I work at DYAD.'  
'Well sure, I mean, it must get pretty annoying.'  
Delphine simply hummed in response before asking 'And what about you, what do you do?'  
A bright smile took over Cosima's face as she recognised an easier subject to talk about, 'Oh I'm studying for my PhD at the moment, evo devo, that's environmental development. It's so cool, last week we were given these samples and…'  
Delphine tuned out for a while as she watched Cosima finish washing up and place the plates on the rack to dry. Her voice was musical but Delphine couldn't focus on any of the words and instead allowed them to wash over her. Cosima looked up at Delphine and noticed a dopey smile playing on her lips, she stopped talking and rose an eyebrow, 'what are you thinking about?' She asked softly, pulling Delphine from her trance.  
'You.'  
Cosima was getting used to Delphine's short, honest answers, and this one forced a smile onto her face as she leant forward seductively, 'Yeah? What about me?'  
'You-erh- need more wine!' Delphine filled up Cosima's glass without making eye contact and she was scared she had come on too strong. She told herself to back off a bit, she didn't even know if Delphine swung that way. She had made no reference to any men in her life, but then again she hadn't mentioned women either. Cosima had inspected the apartment for clues but had come up empty. She took a small sip of the wine and realised she was a little drunk. The wine was nicer than anything she'd had in a long time, making it easy to polish off a glass in minuets. She promised herself this would be her last glass. 

Of course, it wasn't.


	6. Chapter 6

'Cosima!' The loud, British voice pulled her back into the present and Cosima groaned as a wide-eyed, half drunk, Felix came barging into her bedroom.

'Darling why are you home!?' He questioned as he threw himself on top of Cosima, effectively smothering her in the process 'Big date with Del-fine not go so well? Don't worry, your friend Felix is here to cheer you up! Huh? What was that?' Felix moved slightly and Cosima was once again able to pull air into her lungs, she did so with a big gulp.

'I… said… I… couldn't…breath.' Cosima panted between breathes and Felix giggled,

'whoopsy, sorry.' Felix rolled off Cosima entirely but stayed on the bed, 'but seriously, come on. Tell me all about it. How did you fuck it up?'

'I didn't fuck it up!' Cosima argued, but instantly relented under Felix's stern gaze. 'Okay, I may have fucked it up just a little bit…'

* * *

'You did not!' Delphine stared incredulously at the American as she finished her story proudly,

'I did too! I punched him right in the mouth, split his lip open and everything'

'Oh wow, I had no idea I was inviting such a violent criminal into my home. Should I be scared?'

Cosima grinned widely showing off all her teeth, 'No, I only beat up sexist, misogynistic pigs. Beautiful women are normally pretty safe around me.' She winked and Delphine felt a light blush rise to her cheeks. Had she meant to insinuate Delphine was beautiful? She decided not to think about it, and to definitely not think about why it had caused her to blush.

If Cosima could sense Delphine's internal struggle she was doing a very good job of hiding it, she sat propped up against the sofa on the soft plush carpet, legs stretched out in front of her. Delphine sat slightly to the left, crossed legged and holding yet another glass of wine. 'So did it hurt?' questioned Delphine, 'Oh yeah man. Turns out I punch really really wrong. I ended up having to go to hospital with a fractured wrist. Wore a wrist support for like a month. Still hurts sometimes, look.' Cosima shuffled closer and held her arm out to Delphine, who wrapped long, elegant fingers around the exposed flesh. Cosima shivered for the briefest of moments before continuing 'It was fractured from like here' she poked just below her thumb, 'all the way to like here.' She tapped the middle of her forearm and Delphine sat her wine glass down and traced the invisible line with one finger, still holding Cosima's arm in place with the other hand. They were sat so close together now that Cosima could see each rise and fall of Delphines chest as she breathed, she looked from her arm, still enwrapped in Delphines hand to Delphine's eyes, and finally, to her lips. She couldn't have been staring for more than a second, but it seemed like an eternity passed as she imagined leaning in, brushing her own lips against Delphine's….

'You perv!' Felix exclaimed, with all his usual tact, 'so did you snog her?' he asked pouting his lips at Cosima and making kissey noises.

'Yeah right! Like geek monkey over here would have the balls to kiss her!' Tony came in from the doorway and threw himself down on the bed now as well, much to Cosima's annoyance.

'What is this? Story time for drunk adults?' She asked the boys,

'Oh darling, come on! You have to keep going now, I'm positively dying to know what happens next.' Felix battered his eyelashes at Cosima, 'I promise not to interrupt again.' He held up his pinky finger and waggled it as proof. Cosima turned her attention to Tony who simply made the gesture of zipping up his lips and throwing away a key. She took a deep breath and continued 'No I didn't kiss her. I've only known her for half a second! I was the perfect gentleman.'

Cosima pulled her arm away slowly and moved back to where she was sitting before, she was met by a confused look from Delphine, but chose to ignore it, 'So anyway yeah, let that be a lesson to you. Don't punch big men with hard faces.'

Delphine chuckled 'I don't think that's going to be a problem.' Cosima saw an opening and she took it, 'So… no big strong man in your life then?' She tried to ask casually, taking another sip of her wine. Delphine noted the other girls nerves and hid a smile behind her own glass of wine 'Non.' She chose her words carefully, making sure not to give anything away 'I don't really have time for relationships, not with my work. I do occasionally engage in conversations with the man behind the till at the grocery store though… if that counts?'

Cosima shook her head, 'No, I don't think it does' and Delphine hummed her agreement. Cosima continued, 'So, theres no room for men in your life but what about girls? Do you often lure young women back to your apartment and get them drunk?'

'Non.' Delphine said again, 'this is the first time for that. I don't think you need to worry though, drunk or not, I've heard you've got a wicked left hook.' She leant forward and winked. Cosima let a smile spread out across her face, 'Oh yeah, I do! So no trying to take advantage of me in my intoxicated state, okay?' Delphine bit her lip and met Cosima's eyes with her own 'Well, there goes my plan for this evening then.'

* * *

'Please tell me you kissed her!?' Felix interrupted again, practically bouncing up and down with excitement,

'Felix!' came a stern scolding from the doorway, 'You promised you wouldn't interrupt again!'

Cosima groaned as Alison too came over to the bed and perched on the end, she patted Cosima's leg sympathetically 'please Cosima, do continue.'

'You know what, I think its time to sleep.' Cosima tried to push Felix off the bed but he was surprising strong and resisted, 'Oh come on Cosima! You haven't even got to the good part yet!'

'Fine, Felix. But no more interrupting okay?' Felix begrudgingly agreed and Cosima casted a look at an indignant Allison 'Oh! You don't need to worry about me.' She said, looking pointedly at the boys, Tony, credit to him simply grinned and shrugged his shoulders, clearly indicating his still locked mouth. 'Now, where was I?'

* * *

Just at that moment Delphine's phone went off with a loud ringing, instantly ruining the mood. Delphine shut her eyes and hesitated, debating whether or not to pick up. But it could be important. With a defeated sigh she checked her phone and saw it was Aldous Leekie, with an apologetic smile she turned to Cosima 'I'm sorry, it's work, I should get this.'

'Oh yeah, yeah, fine.' Cosima waved away her apology and turned her attention back to her wine glass but inside Cosima was confused, a work call? At this time? It was past eleven. Delphine wandered away into watch she guessed was her bedroom for some privacy but Cosima, being Cosima, snuck up to the door, which was only partially closed, for a listen.

'How can you be sure?' Came Delphine's voice from inside the room 'You've found what?' a long pause and then 'I see. What about the other set of results, are all the subjects showing similar symptoms?' Cosima was intrigued, who were the subjects Delphine was talking about, in Cosima's eagerness to overhear something good she tripped forward and nudged the door open slightly. She grimaced and tried to look as innocent as possible as Delphine appeared on the other side. She held the phone down by her shoulder and narrowed her eyes 'I was looking for the bathroom?' Cosima asked sheepishly, Delphine didn't quite look like she believed her but pointed out the room anyway, as Cosima turned she heard the woman start up the conversation again, this time all in French.

Cosima waited patiently on the couch and after only a few minutes Delphine reappeared. 'Cosima, I am sorry. There has been quite the breakthrough at work and they want me to have a look at it, it seems. They are sending a car. I've ordered you a cab.'

'Oh erm, okay.' Cosima was sad that the evening had been cut short so brutally and wondered if Delphine was pissed at her for spying 'I've had a great time, thanks for cooking and everything. I'll have to repay the favour sometime.'

'Oh yes, what is your speciality again? Instant noodles?' Delphine's words were teasing but her mind was clearly somewhere else as she gathered various bit of paper from her desk.

'That's the one!'Cosima agreed, shrugging on her coat. They both heard the sound of a car honking and Delphine stopped what she was doing to walk Cosima to the door. 'Thank you for coming Cosima, I'll call you.' Delphine kissed her on both cheeks again but Cosima noted she didn't linger as long as she had before. 'Yeah, er goodbye.' She started off down the hall, cursing her own damn curiosity.

* * *

Cosima stopped talking and looked at the faces surrounding her, 'Oh dear.' Allison was the first to speak 'well, you see, this is where being nosey gets you.'

Cosima rolled her eyes and threw her head back down on the pillow 'Yeah, thanks Allison. That's what I needed to hear.'

'Oh relax,' Tony finally spoke, 'It's not the end of the world. Invite her out, apologise for being a dirty snoop and move past it. No biggie.'

'Tony's right. For once.' Felix chimed in, 'Im sure she'll forgive you. I bet she's working on some top secret shit, she was probably paranoid you're some sort of hot lesbian CIA agent, sent to spy on her.'

Cosima raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. Seeing that there was no getting through to her right now her housemates rolled off the bed and left her wallow, Felix shouting over his shoulder 'just text her, Cosima!'

Just text her, Cosima thought as she finally sparked up the joint she'd been craving. Yeah, she'd just text her. Tomorrow. She'll text her tomorrow.


	7. Chapter 7

_'_ _Hey, I had a great time last night, sorry about how it ended. Do you wanna do something again sometime?'_

Cosima reread the text she had sent three weeks ago. It was a friday and she'd had a rare day off from studying. She should have spent it out enjoying the blasting hot sun, but instead she found herself inside staring at her phone, waiting for a reply that obviously wasn't coming.

She just couldn't believe that she'd messed it up that badly, she's hadn't even done anything wrong! 'Eurgh!' She rolled over and grabbed the half smoked spliff from last night, lit up, inhaled, and vowed to put Delphine completely out of her head.

So when Felix burst into her room exclaiming that his sister, Sarah, was coming to visit him Cosima allowed herself to be dragged outside with the rest of the gang. She liked Sarah, having met her a couple of times before and she actually found herself having quite a good time. Tony had bought his skateboard with him as well and the group headed to the local park. They had wasted the time giving each other scores on their tricks and attempting to teach Sarah to skate. So yes, she was having a good time, until-

'Hey, isn't that your girlfriend, Cos?'

 **Delphine normally detested the walk home from her lab but today was different. Apart from a few sparse cigarette breaks she had not stepped foot outside the DYAD institute in three or four days now. The work she was involved in seemed to be exploding before her very eyes and she had taken to eating all her meals in the staff cafeteria, catching quick naps on the sofa in between working, not to mention having to use the radiation showers at work So today she was more than happy to leave her car in the underground car park and walk the long way home. It felt good to be outside, sun on her face, it felt good to be… catcalled? She looked around but couldn't find the culprit behind the whistle, it must have been a joke anyway. The long hours and the lack of sleep meant that definitely looked a little worse for wear these days. Suddenly there was a clattering of wheels and a figure whizzed past her so fast and so close that her hair whipped around her face. She jumped back, alarmed and slightly angry and almost collided with another figure on a skateboard. Luckily the second skater was going at a far more reasonable pace and Delphine was just able to make out dreadlocks, a cheeky smile, a nose ring...**

'Cosima?' The blonde gasped, surprise colouring her features.

'Oh so you do remember my name…' Cosima skidded to a stop, the tail end of her skateboard grinding against the hot asphalt. She stepped off and looked up at the second woman, hands on hips 'cos you know, when you never text me back I thought "oh no, she's got amnesia, she doesn't remember me!" or "oh my god she must have been in a horrible accident and all of her fingers were chopped off and that's why she can't text me back!"' Delphine dipped her head to hide her smile and when she lifted it back up she was full sincerity. 'Cosima I am so, so, sorry. We've hit quite a breakthrough at work and I've pretty much been living in my lab.' She tentatively rested a hand on the girl's arm

'forgive me?'

Cosima's eyes darted to the warm hand on her forearm and then back up to Delphine's face. Her eyes wide and pleading, framed by those magnificent blonde curls, Cosima couldn't stay mad but she wasn't letting the woman off that easily. 'Hmm…' She pondered her revenge 'Okay, fine. You're forgiven-' Delphine let out a sigh and dropped her hand from her arm, causing Cosima to knit her eyebrows together as she continued 'you're forgiven but you have to promise to make it up to me.' She moved in suggestively but kept her actions playful, waggling her finger at the taller woman.

Delphine's smile was slow and genuine, pleased she had not ruined her chances with this girl. 'Okay well, you know, the lab has granted me some leave over the next few days…'

'Awesome timing dude, you wanna like, hang out or something?'

'Non.'

'Oh. Erm okay?' Cosima was taken aback by the short, negative answer and for once she was rendered speechless. Delphine moved even closer still, effectively closing the gap between them. 'I do not want to hangout with you Cosima. I want to take you out.' Her hazel eyes darted back and forth between Cosima's own, searching for an answer, 'as in, on a date.' She clarified. If she was expecting some kind of sarcastic joke or banter from the smaller girl then she was very much wrong, instead she was met by a warm smile and a nervous laugh 'yeah, I'd like that. I'd like that a lot.'

Another catcall broke the moment between the women as Tony popped up behind Cosima 'Aw, come on.' He pleaded 'Leave this knucklehead at home.' He used the palm of his hand to push Cosima's face away 'Go out with me instead,' he flashed a wolfy smile and although she felt a little awkward at the attention, Delphine felt mostly happy at being included in the friends light banter. It made her feel a part of the group, it made her feel connected. Something that she hadn't realised she had missed. She made a note to call Krystal, to call her friends back in France, to make time for something other than work.

Completely oblivious to Delphine's inner monologue Cosima was now wrestling with Tony, quick as a whip she snaked her arm out and snatched the skateboard out of his hands, she lowered it to the ground and gave it a good push with her foot and the board went flying down the path 'Oh dude, really?' Tony gave Cosima a stern look before winking at Delphine and sprinting after his board.

Delphine laughed and looked into Cosima's eyes, trying to recreate some of their earlier intimacy, 'so? When should I pick you up?'

Cosima thought about it and winced 'You know, as much as I'd love to see you tonight, Sarah's only down for the day and we kinda promised we'd take her out so… are you free tomorrow?'

'Tomorrow is perfect.' Delphine felt lighter than she had in weeks 'I'll call you with details!'

'Oh yeah?' Cosima raised an eyebrow 'I'm looking forward to that, but I won't hold my breath.'

'I promise, Cosima. I promise I will never forget to text you back again!'

And looking into those soft hazel eyes, Cosima believed her.


	8. Chapter 8

Cosima was already 4 shots and one suspiciously fruity cocktail deep at the bar by the time Delphine texted her. And that was not counting the vodka martini's Felix had kept forcing down her throat at the pre drinks.

 **Hello Cosima. It was lovely running into you today, thank you for giving me a chance to make it up to you. Just confirming details for tomorrow, I can pick you up at seven again, if that works for you. Let me know.**

Relief, anticipation, unforeseen happiness spread through Cosima as she texted back,

 **Haha, okay ma'am, I shall make sure to be present and correct for seven. Del, you text like you're arranging a business meeting!**

 **Sorry! Wuu2 2night? Where U ?**

Cosima shook her head, grin firmly fixed on her face,

 **You're so down with the kids. We're at a bar, Neolution?**

 **I don't think I know it?**

 **I'm not surprised, you should see this place. Thank god Sarah leant me some clothes!**

Delphine thought back, trying to remember what little she had seen of Sarah, she smiled to think of Cosima in all black, leather jacket or impossibly short shorts.

 **So what are you wearing?**

 **My, my. So forward. Get some class, Dr Cormier.**

Cosima was unable to tease the other woman but nevertheless sent another message straight after, a picture that they had taken at pre-drinks. Cosima wore a tight black dress, laddered tights and higher heels than she cared for. The picture showed both her and Sarah, full length, posing and swearing at the camera. Delphine's heart jumped into her throat when she saw it. That dress, those shoes. She felt a stirring in her stomach and unconsciously crossed her legs where she sat on her bed. She sent off a quick reply of heart eyed emojis before biting on her lip and looking down at herself subconsciously. She had just got out of the shower when she texted Cosima and she had since sat in her towel staring at her phone. _Well, it's only fair,_ she thought as she sent Cosima back a picture of herself, the towel carefully draped over her naked body.

'Holy fuck!' Cosima quickly locked her phone screen and looked around nervously when she received Delphines picture, those type of photos were for her eyes only. Once she was certain there was no one able to see her phone screen she unlocked the phone again and stared at the gorgeous image in front. Any reservations she had about the blonde instantly disappeared and she quickly texted back,

 **Holy shit, Delphine! How am I supposed to concentrate now. Seriously considering ditching these guys and going to yours now.**

 **I'm sure you can wait until tomorrow, Cosima**

 **Yeah, but I'm not sure I want to**

 **Go and enjoy your evening, try not to think of me too much.**

 **Tease.**

Cosima's phone was suddenly snatched out of her hand as a rowdy Sarah and Felix rounded her up. 'You're not getting this thing back until at least one dance!' Felix had threatened, as they lead her onto the dance floor.

It was a few hours, and drinks, later when Cosima finally wrestled her phone of Felix. Alcohol fueling her already spontaneous nature, she ended up texting a series of texts off to the blonde.

 **It didn't wirk, I'm still thinkng of you**

 **Realllly wish you were here right now**

 **You hsve no idea what tht picrure did to me**

'Oh for fucks sake Cosima!' Sarah snatahced the phone back off her, 'drunk texting? Really. Way to play it cool. Wait-what picture!?'

'Come on Sarah, don't!' Sarah just laughed at Cosima's failed attempts to get the phone back as she held it high above her head. 'Okay, okay!' she relented, laughing as she talked, 'I won't look! But you need to put this away! The two women went and found more drinks before hitting the dance floor. The phone turned off .


	9. Chapter 9

3 shots later and Cosima had almost forgotten about the doctor as she danced with Sarah. 'Oi Oi ladies' Felix appeared out of nowhere and jumped inbetween them spilling his drink, a surprisingly butch beer, all over the floor 'Oh piss off Fee.' Sarah grumbled taking Cosima by the hips and swaying 'What? There's no room for me?' Felix pouted and then followed Sarah's eyeline to a handsome, rather muscled guy standing at the bar. 'Oh I see! The old "lesbian to get his attention" trick.' He turned to Cosima, 'Don't get any idea's Cos, my sisters an old hand at being bar-sexual.'

Cosima stole a glance at the man, disguising it by dropping down low and flipping her head back 'he's hot!.' she concluded, 'why don't you just go talk to him?'

'What, and let him know I'm interested? Hell no. This'll work much better, trust me.' She threw her arms up and around Cosima's neck and pulled her in close, Cosima laughed and played along with the ridiculous plan, trying not to think about who she'd rather be dancing with.

Curled up on the couch, Delphine was halfway through a second glass of wine When her phone lit up,

 **It didn't wirk, I'm still thinkng of you**

She smiled.

 **Realllly wish you were here right now**

She smirked.

 **You hsve no idea what tht picrure did to me**

She stared at her phone, pressing the home button twice to keep it lit up, but no further texts came. She bit her lip and thought deeply. She'd only planned to have a quiet night in and relax before tomorrow but now she wasn't sure if she could wait. She would only have a few nights off before she had to return to the lab and really, what was the point in wasting one? She downed the rest of her wine in one mouthful and, before she could change her mind, called a taxi.

Stepping into the club, Delphine wasn't sure that she would be able to find Cosima, but she needn't have worried. She simply followed all the men's eyelines until she settled upon two women grinding on each other in the middle of the dancefloor. She marched through the crowd of people and tapped Sarah on the shoulder, 'You have five seconds to let go of her' she snarled, feeling strangely possessive of the other girl. 'Delphine!' Cosima couldn't believe that she was really there, she gracefull lept from a suprised Sarah's grasp and near enough fell into the blonde's arms. 'What are you doing here?' Delphine could tell that she had more than a couple and she wasn't enjoying all the eyes focused on the three of them. 'Come on, let's go talk.' She held onto Cosima's hand and started to drag her over to the smoking area. 'Oh! One second!' Cosima quickly diverted them over to the bar and shouted to the guy Sarah had been checking out 'Hey, dude! My friend is like, super into you!' She motioned with her hands, dramatically pointing at Sarah, who was still on the other side of the room. She made a few more motions, waving her finger between the two of them to prove her point and she even threw in a couple of winks for good measure. 'I think he's got it,' Delphine laughed and waved goodbye to the man with one hand whilst the other wrapped even tighter around Cosima's. Together they entered into the large smoking area and slid down on the wooden picnic benches. Cosima swung her legs over Delphine's lap and sat sideways whilst the blonde rooted around in her handbag searching for a cigarette. 'Soo…' Cosima trailed off as Delphine took her first drag 'Wotcha doing here?'

'I couldn't resist. And you did tell me this was your wish.' She offered the smoke out to Cosima. Although not much of a cigarette smoker normally Cosima was much more open to it after a couple of drinks and besides, how could she turn down anything that had been caught inbetween those beautiful lips. 'Hmm did I say that?' She teased, 'well you know, I am pretty drunk, I'm obviously not thinking right.'

'Well if that's the case, I can just go.' Delphine made to get up,

'Don't you dare.' Cosima pinned her to the bench with her legs and passed the cigarette back. Delphine didn't reply, simply took another long, slow drag and stared directly into her eyes. Cosima felt a stirring in her stomach and squeezed her legs tighter together. Inching her knees up, she moved so that their body's were closer together, their heads almost touching. 'So now that you're here.' She said softly, 'what are you gonna do?' Delphine brought her head down further and murmured against her neck, 'I'm going to take you back inside, and I'm going to get us another drink.' Cosima hummed her approval, either at the comment or the feeling of her breath on her neck, or maybe both. Delphine continued, 'And then I'm going to lead you onto the dance floor and we're going to make what you were doing with Sarah look like child's play.' Cosima hummed again, bringing her hand up to stroke at the blonde's neck. 'And then' Delphine moved her lips up closer to Cosima's ear and whispered 'then I'm going to take you home with me and give you a private dance, all for yourself.'

'Oh fuck, Delphine.' Cosima closed her eyes and felt the blonde move away. When she opened them again Delphine had a self satisfied, but completely innocent, smirk on her face 'What?' she shrugged, throwing the roach to the ground and pushing herself up. She held out a hand to Cosima 'are you ready?' She asked, gesturing to back inside.

'Oh hell yes.'


End file.
